/*
    Copyright 1996-2008 Ariba, Inc.

    Licensed under the Apache License, Version 2.0 (the "License");
    you may not use this file except in compliance with the License.
    You may obtain a copy of the License at
        http://www.apache.org/licenses/LICENSE-2.0

    Unless required by applicable law or agreed to in writing, software
    distributed under the License is distributed on an "AS IS" BASIS,
    WITHOUT WARRANTIES OR CONDITIONS OF ANY KIND, either express or implied.
    See the License for the specific language governing permissions and
    limitations under the License.

    $Id: //ariba/platform/ui/aribaweb/ariba/ui/aribaweb/core/AWElement.java#8 $
*/

package ariba.ui.aribaweb.core;

/**
    The base interface for objects living in an {@link AWTemplate} (i.e. .awl file).  Its key
    implementor, {@link AWComponentReference} bridges from the static (and multithreaded) world
    of templates, into the world of {@link AWComponent}.

    The {@link AWCycleable} interface is key to its role in the template.
 */
public interface AWElement extends AWCycleable, AWCycleableReference, Cloneable, AWVisitable
{
    public Object clone ();
    public void validate (AWValidationContext validationContext, AWComponent component);
    public void appendTo (StringBuffer buffer);
}